Dispenser for small objects



Nov. 24, 1959 M. B. MITTLEMAN DsPENsER FOR SMALL OBJECTS Filed out. 11. 1957 "llll lll 1NvENToR.

MYRon suon MTTLEMAn 'WWW/@Lund Amp/vans' United States Patent() DISPENSER FOR SMALL OBJECTS Myron Budd Mittleman, New York, N.Y., assignor to Schenley Industries, Inc., New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Application October 11, 1957, Serial No.,689,698

3 Claims. (Cl. 206-42) This invention relates to an improved package and dispenser for small parts or objects.

An important object of this invention is to provide a dispenser for tablets, capsules, candies, chewing gum, cigarette lighter flints, and other small parts or objects, having a minimum of parts, which may be automatically filled With'said objects, and which may be operated in a .simple manner to dispense one or more at a time of the objects with which it has been filled.

Another important object of this invention is to provide a package and dispenser which aligns the objects therein without the need for positioning devices or manipulation thereof. Still another important object of this inventionis to provide a package and dispenser which protects the contents therein, while providing simple and repeatable access thereto, as well as rellability with similar or related objects.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the dispenser has only two parts, a tray and a cover, both of which are optionally molded from transparent plastic. The tray has a longitudinally elongated bottom wall and an upstanding continuous peripheral wall. The bottom wall has a dispensing hole adjacent the front end of the tray. The cover is also longitudinally elongated, but is somewhat shorter than the tray and consists of a top wall and depending end walls. The cover top wall and the side portions of the peripheral wall of the tray are provided with engaging means for holding the two parts together so that they fit frictionally and longitudinally slidably. Thus, the top wall cover is optionally provided with flanges' which tit frictionally into grooves in the side wall portions of the peripheral tray wall.

The interior space of the cover is filled with a longitudinally extending row of tablets or other objects to be placed in the device. In the rear position of the cover, relative to the tray, the front end wall of the cover is located rearwardly of the hole in the tray bottom wall, and the contents may not be dispensed. In order to dispense the contents of the device, the cover is merely slid to the forward position in which its front end wall is located forwardly of the hole in the tray bottom wall, thereby permitting a tablet or other contents to be dropped out of the hole in the tray bottom wall.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description'in conjunction with the annexed drawings,.in which a preferred embodiment of the invention is disclosed.

In the drawings,

Fig. l is a top planvview of the device, showing in broken lines a row of tablets positioned within the interior space of the device.

v Fig. 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, showing theicover moved so as to dispense a tablet.

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4--4 of Fig. 2. 'Fig 5 is`an exploded perspective view of the dispenser.

F.ig.r 6 is a detail of Fig. 4, drawn to an enlarged scale.

lCC

The packaging and dispensing device shown in the drawings consists of only two parts, a tray 10 and a cover 30 which is slidably mounted upon the tray.

These two parts may be formed readily by injection molding or other conventional molding process from conventional plastics, such as polystyrene. As will be apparent from the following detailed description, the two parts of the device may be assembled readily without the use of special tools and without the use of supplementary fastening means. Optionally, the two parts are transparent.

Tray 10 has a longitudinally extending, elongated bottom wall 11, the ends of which are optionally rounded. A hole 12, which is optionally round, is formed in said bottom wall 11 near the front end ',thereof. Said tray 10 also has an upstanding wall 13 which extends around the entire periphery of bottom wall 11. The side portions 13a of wall 13 are straight and parallel to each other, and the end portions 13b of wall 13 are optionally rounded in the manner clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 5.

Grooves 14 are respectively formed in the side wall portions 13a. Each said groove 14 extends almost the entire length of wall portion 13a and is located at the top thereof. Each said groove 14 is undercut in that its side wall 14a is downwardly outwardly inclined. Each said groove 14 has a bottom wall 14b which is parallel to wall 11.

The cover 30 has a top wall 31 and depending end walls 32. Said cover 36 is shaped and sized so that it can be longitudinally slidingly nested within tray 10.

Cover wall 31 is longitudinally elongated. Wall 31 has side tongues 33 protruding outwardly therefrom, each said tongue 33 being longitudinally elongated but being of less length than groove 14. The outer side surface 33a of tongue 33 is downwardly outwardly inclined and is inclined at the same angle as the outer wall 14a of groove 14. Said tongues 33 are adapted to be snapped into the respective grooves 14 with the tongue surfaces 33a slidably and frictionally abutting the groove walls 14a and with the bottom face of each tongue 33 resting slidably and frictionally upon groove wall 14b.

The width of the main portion of wall 31, forwardly and rearwardly of anges 33a, is slightly less than the distance between the tray wall portions 13a. The end portions of wall 31 are preferably shaped to conform to the shape of the tray end wall portions 13b. Similarly, the shape of the end walls 32 corresponds to the shape of length of cover wall 31 is less than the length of tray wall 11.

Optionally, the upper surfaces of cover wall 31 are knurled, as indicated by the reference numeral 35.

In order to assemble tray 10 and cover 30, it is necessary merely to snap the flanges 33 into the respective grooves 14. The lower edges of walls 32 then just clear the upper face of bottom wall 11. Also, cover 30 is then longitudinally movable relative to tray 10 between a rear position, shown in Fig. 2, and a front position, shown in Fig. 3. The operator may conveniently move cover 30 between these two positions by holding the tray in the palm and by applying the thumb of the hand to the knurled portion 35 and by applying force to the cover so as to slide it in the appropriate direction. The dispenser can thus be operated with one hand.

In the rear position of cover 30, the rear end wall 32 abuts the rear tray end Wall portion 13b, the two walls conforming in shape as previously stated. In this position,

the rear end of ange 33 is located adjacent the rear end Patented Nov. 24, 1959 3 and is located adjacent or against front tray end wall portion 13b. In this position, the front end of ange 33 is located adjacent the front end of groove 14, and the rear coverA wall 32 is located forwardly of and'spaced from the rear tray wall portion 13b.

The above-described device Ymay be used to package and dispense a wide variety of small parts and objects. Illustratively, the drawings show the device as containing a plurality of tablets 50, and show the manner in which said tablets 50'are dispensed.

Optionally, each said tablet S is generaliy round in shape and is of a diameter slightly less than that of a hole 12 so as to permit the tablet to drop through he hole. Of course, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to any particular shape of tablet 50, andv that the shape of hole 12 may be varied, depending upon the shape of the tablet which `isto be dispensed. While conveniently, tablet 50 may be a medicinal, the invention is not so limited, and the device may be utilized to package and dispense any objects dispensable through hole 12.

Fig. 2 shows a plurality of tablets 50 mounted within the device, with cover 30 in its rear position as previously mentioned. Each tablet 50 is of slightly less height than the distance between wall 31 and wall 11, and is of slightly less diameter or width than the distance between wall portions 13a. The concave shape of the inner faces of walls 32 and wall portions 13b, accommodate the circular shape of tablets 50. Of course, these end wall shapes can be varied, depending upon the shape of the objects which the device is intended to package and dispense. The overall length of the row of tablets, as shown in Fig. 2, is optionally slightly less than the overall length of the cover inner space.

In the rear position of cover 30, as shown in Fig. 2, the tablets 50 cannot escape .from the device. To prevent cover 30 from accidentally sliding forwardly to its front position, in addition to the frictional engagement provided by the tit of anges 33 into grooves 14, bottom wall 30 is formed on its upper face with a slight bump 36 just forwardly of the rear cover wall 32, as shown in Fig. 2. However, only a slight additional force by the operator is necessary, so as to make the rear wall 32 clear bump 36.

Upon moving cover 30 to its front position, hole 12 registers with the inner space of cover 30. Accordingly, the front or leading tablet 50 drops downwardly through hole 12. After the rst tablet has been dispensed, when a further tablet is to be dispensed in the front position of cover 30, it is merely necessary to tilt the dispenser forwardly downwardly so that the tablets 50 slide forwardly to bring the next tablet 5t) into registration with hole 12.

It is then a simple matter for the operator to return the dispenser to horizontal position and to retract the cover to its rear position, if he wishes to prevent a further tablet from dropping out of hole 12.

It will be apparent that the device may be filled by any suitable means. However, as an important feature of the invention, the dispenser is readily adapted to be lled on conventional automatic jogging tables. rIfhis may be done by placing tray in the jogging apparatus, the jogging apparatus being appropriately designed so that the tablets may be automatically dispersed in a row upon the bottom wall 11. The cover 30 is then placed in position over tray 10 and the anges 33 are snapped into grooves 14 with cover 30 located in its rear position of Fig. 2. The material of which the two parts of the dispenser are made is sufficiently resilient so as to permit the flanges 33 to be thus snapped into the grooves 14.

The device maybe relled readily by inserting objects successively through hole 12 into the interior space of the device.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that, in essence, my improved device consists of a longitudinally elongated tray having an open top and having a hole in the bottom thereof and near one end thereof, and a longitudinally elongated cover which is shorter than said tray and which is longitudinally slidably moupted in the top of said tray. The cover has a front end wall extending downwardly therefrom into proximity with the bottom of said tray. The cover is movable relative to said tray between a rear position of cover in which said front end wall is located rearwardly of said hole and a front position of said cover in which said front end wall is located forwardly of said hole.

In essence, in my improved package, a plurality of objects are disposed in said tray rearwardly of said cover front end wall. These objects are sized so that they can only be positioned in said tray in longitudinal succession, and are also sized so as to be able to pass through the hole, but only one at a time. This permits the objects to be dispensed in the manner previously described.

While I have disclosed a preferred embodiment of my invention, and have indicated various changes, omissions and additions which lmay be made therein, it will be apparent that various other changes, omissions and additions may be made in the invention, without departing from the scope and spirit thereof.

What is claimed is:

l. A combination package comprising a dispenser and tablets, said dispenser being longitudinally elongated and comprising a tray having a bottom hole adjacent the front end thereof and a cover which is shorter than said bottom and which is longitudinally slidably mounted between the sides of said tray, said cover having a depending front end wall which extends to a point proximate to the bottom, said cover being movable relative to said bottom between a rear position of said cover wherein said front end wall is located rearwardly of said hole and a front position of said cover wherein said front end wall is located forwardly of said hole, said tablets being disposed in longitudinal succession in said tray rearwardly of said cover front end wall, said tablets extending substantially between the sides of said tray and also extending substantially between said cover and said bottom, each said tablet being shaped conformingly with the shape of said hole and being of slightly smaller size than said hole so as to permit only one tablet at a time to drop through said hole when said cover is moved to its front position.

2. A combination package comprising a dispenser and a plurality of objects, said dispenser being longitudinally elongated and comprising a tray having a bottom hole adjacent the front end thereof and a cover which is shorter than the bottom of the tray and which is longitudinally slidably mounted between the sides of said tray, said covering having a depending front end wall which extends to a point proximate to the bottom, said cover being movable relative to said bottom between a rear position of said cover wherein said front end wall is located rearwardly of said hole and a front position of said cover wherein said front end Wall is located forwardly of said hole, said objects being disposed in longitudinal succession in said tray rearwardly of said cover end wall, said objects being sized so as to be movable longitudinally but substantially immovable in other directions within said device, said objects also Ebeing sized so as to permit only one object at a time to drop through said hole when said cover is moved to its front position.

3. A dispensing device comprising a longitudinally elongated tray having a tlat bottom wall and an upstanding, continuous peripheral wall of uniform height, said peripheral wall having parallel side portions and end portions, said bottom wall having an aperture near the front end thereof, a longitudinally elongated cover which is shorter than said tray, means mounting said cover longitudinally slidably between and adjacent the top of said side portions of said peripheral wall, said cover `'which said front end- Vcover wall is located rearwardly 5 of said aperture and a front position of said cover in which said front end cover wall is located forwardly of said aperture.

References Cited in the tile of this patent Y UNITED STATES PATENTS Ie'ers Ian. 3l, 1905 2,582,821 Duell et al. Ian. 15, 1952 Waber et al. Aug. 5, 1952 

